Today I was excited to do a second piece in what promises to be my first ever Saxon sleeve. I love Celtic, and Pictish art, but Saxon is comparatively unexplored territory. This sea dragon was found on the shield of King Raedwald, one of the greatest of the early English warrior-kings. He ruled over what is now East-Anglia and was also overlord of all the English kingdoms. When he died in around the year 625 he was placed in an Anglo-Saxon war ship along with his armor, shield, weapons and other fine treasures. He was covered by a burial mound where he lay undisturbed until the site was excavated in 1939.

Sutton Hoo 'Saxon Dragon' Tattoo by Pat Fish

Here is a photo from 2011 of the Saxon 'Bird of Prey' Tattoo on the same client: